Nick Grant fancies Alocasia to strike at Chantilly on Wednesday and he has a tip for every race at the meeting.
Alocasia looks the one to be with in the feature Prix Texanita at Chantilly on Wednesday.
The Khalid Abdullah-owned filly brings some solid-looking form to the table for this Group Three affair and was very much a model of consistency last season.
Having got off the mark at the third attempt, her second to the high-class Tropbeau in Deauville was a smart effort and she backed that up to score at Listed level at Maisons-Laffitte
Her final outing was back at Maisons-Laffitte for a Group Two assignment and while she had to settle for fifth, she was only beaten two and a half lengths.
There was no disgrace in that and the Henri-Francois Devin-trained runner looks sure to be in the mix.
Simeen has claims to being a future star and can enhance her reputation in the Prix de la Pistolle.
In the care of Jean-Claude Rouget in the Aga Khan colours, she was not asked a question in two starts last season and it is worth noting connections were toying with a reappearance against Tropbeau in a Classic trial this week, which shows the regard in which she is held.
After bolting up at Saint-Cloud first time out in July, she did it equally well at Clairefontaine the following month and it will be fascinating to see how far up the ladder she can go in time.
The lightly-raced Celestin should be hard to beat in the Prix du Belvedere.
The Dabirsim colt was seriously impressive on his final juvenile outing, bolting up in a Listed contest at Toulouse, where he came right away from his field when switched for a run,
Trained by Fabrice Chappet, he has only encountered soft ground so far, so would need to prove his effectiveness on anything quicker, but there is little doubt on what he has shown so far that he has an engine.
Plenty of attention in the Prix des Veneurs will surround the return to action of the Chappet-trained Hurricane Ivor.
He was being touted as Royal Ascot material after sauntering clear first time out at Chantilly, but the wheels came off in a Group Three back there next time out and he has not been seen since that run in June.
If he is half the horse his reputation suggested he was, he will be hard to oppose, even with a question or two to answer.
SELECTIONS:
CHANTILLY: 10.00 Celestin, 10.30 SIMEEN (NAP), 11.00 Citadelle, 11.30 Ornamental Glitter, 12.00 Kalarina, 12.30 Hurricane Ivor, 13.12 Alocasia, 13.47 Slickteg, 14.22 Vautrin, 14.57 Chef Oui Chef.
DOUBLE: Simeen and Alocasia.
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